Tsongas, Golnik compete in rematch

A rematch from two years ago pits incumbent Niki Tsongas against Jon Golnik for the Third Congressional District seat.

The expanded district, formerly the 5th District, now includes Clinton as well as Lancaster, Berlin and Bolton in a district reconfiguration necessitated by the loss of a Massachusetts seat in the House of Representatives.

The Democratic incumbent, Tsongas won re-election 54 percent to 42 percent against Golnik in the 2010 election.

Tsongas has since represented a district anchored by Lowell, where she has lived since her marriage to the late Paul Tsongas, since first being elected in 2007, filling the seat opened by Marty Meehan's resignation.

Tsongas, 66, formed Lowell's first all-female law practice, and served as dean of external affairs at Middlesex Community College prior to election to Congress. She has three daughters, Ashley, Katina and Molly.

Republican challenger Golnik, 47, is a businessman who lives in Carlisle with his wife, Phyllis, and two children, Zeke and Tillie. He has worked as a paralegal on Wall Street and as a currency trader before starting two businesses.

Economy

Key issues in the race, according to Golnik, are “Jobs, jobs, jobs – and not necessarily in that order.”

“We need to get this economy growing so it can begin creating jobs,” Golnik said. “There is a large social cost to this prolonged period of unemployment and that is rarely spoken, and it goes beyond the obvious problems of supporting one's family to self-esteem as well. We need to get people back to work, by reducing the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 25 percent so businesses stay here and hire. We need to extend the tax cuts for everyone, including the small businesses.

“My opponent believes in raising taxes, and doing so in a period of stagnant economic growth is the last thing we should be doing. We need to repeal the job killing Affordable Care Act and implement real health care reform that will reduce costs.”

Tsongas also saw economic issues at the top of the priority list.

“Keeping our economic recovery on track and creating good jobs are a top priority,” Tsongas said. “This requires an engaged federal partner. We need to invest in our innovative small businesses, create educational and workforce training opportunities, and reform our tax code to make it fair and incentivize keeping jobs here.”

“I also believe we have a responsibility to stand up for those who have sacrificed for us,” she said, noting she authored legislation that “strengthens the rights of, and response to, survivors of sexual assault in the military. I've also worked to increase funding for the research and development of safer, lighter weight, gender appropriate body armor for our troops.

“I also believe that we must tackle our deficit and debt, but we must do it in a way that is fair by asking those that have done the best to pay their share toward our recovery and I will never support any effort to turn Medicare into a voucher program or privatize Social Security.”

Ranking the economy, jobs and the deficit, Tsongas said, “First and foremost, we need to create jobs. I support a comprehensive approach to job creation that includes tax credits for small businesses, investing in our infrastructure, improving our workforce training programs, and reforming our tax code to encourage manufacturing companies to create jobs here as opposed to overseas.

“We also must address our debt and deficit,” she said, citing support for $900 billion in cuts to federal spending as well as asking the top 2 percent to contribute more to deficit reduction.

“Finally, a growing economy and lower unemployment is our shared goal. The two parties often simply disagree on how to get there. I think there is a role for government in making strategic investments in nascent industries, in our aging infrastructure, and in education and workforce training.”

Golnik said, “First and foremost, we need to get the economy growing so that it begins creating sustainable jobs in the private sector. Deficit reduction will be a large part of creating a vibrant healthy economy. If we get this economy growing, business will begin to grow and pay more taxes as well as beginning to hire, creating jobs for folks that will pay taxes as well. Increasing our government revenues through economic growth and not by raising taxes will go a long way to relieving our deficit and debt.”

New district

The new district includes towns, like Clinton, now encompassing communities from the northeast and Lowell to communities as far west as Gardner.

“Redistricting has offered me an opportunity to introduce myself to new voters and new communities, each of which are unique but in so many cases share similarities with towns I already represent,” Tsongas said. “Many of the new communities, such as Clinton, share a history rooted in the Industrial Revolution and have been working hard to reinvent themselves even as we face a challenging economy. I have a strong track record of success working with communities to help them realize their visions for themselves.”

Golnik said, “We have spent a large amount of time in the 11 new cities and towns in the district. In fact, for a better part of the first two months after I announced my intentions to run for Congress, we spent most of our time in these new places. I think our work has been illustrated by the endorsements we have received. For us, the new towns represent a new opportunity that makes campaigning in these towns almost like running in an open seat.

Voters have seen “political gridlock” and partisanship issues as a concern.

“We can't address it with a representative who votes 95 percent of the time with her party leadership, as Niki Tsongas has,” Golnik said. “A good idea is a good idea regardless of the letter next to one's name.”

“When I was first elected to Congress,” Tsongas said, “I said that I wanted to change the tone in Washington. I have since learned how difficult it is for one person to do that. However, I have made it a point to never demonize those who come to a different conclusion than I do on the other side of the aisle, and I have had great success working with my Republican colleagues on some very important issues.”

Tsongas said she has worked with Republicans on numerous issues, and on occasion has voted against bills backed by party leadership.